13" Asus Zenbook UX31A + GTX750@4Gbps-mPCIe2 (PE4C 2.1) + Win8.1 [Kaiyoti]

[Kaiyoti]

Pictures

I don't want to risk taking images of the internals with the mini pcie attached because the laptop screws (torx) got weaker and weaker since I started this. The highlighted area is the mini pcie slot. The top of the image is the hinge of the laptop and I've managed to file the vent at the bottom side a little for the cable to run out and now have the laptop lid screwed back in.

This is what the finished product looks like:

System

13" Asus Zenbook UX31A-DB51

i5-3317U (Dual Core) CPU

4GB DDR3 RAM

Intel HD 4000 iGPU

N/A dGPU

Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit

eGPU parts

PE4C-PM060A 2.1 adapter

DELL DA-2 220W for Optiplex PSU

BenQ E2420HD external LCD

EVGA GTX750 SC video card

Power on process

Issues

Maybe I haven't dug hard enough but a lot of articles I read seems to suggest that internal lcd is automatic when you change Windows Projection option or whichever port is connected, but that's not the case for me.

I have a PE4C as well as an EXP GDC Beast. I'm able to boot my Asus Zenbook UX31A laptop with the GTX 750 card but only through external monitor connected to the card. After I boot, I no longer see Intel HD4000 in my device managers. Nor does it detect my laptop screen. This is running Windows 8.1 Pro.

Are there more work for me to get internal lcd working? Or is my laptop not supported? I tried going into the bios and there's no option for enabling/disabling built in VGA option.

Any help would be much appreciated.

Paul

[Tech Inferno Fan]

I have a PE4C as well as an EXP GDC Beast. I'm able to boot my Asus Zenbook UX31A laptop with the GTX 750 card but only through external monitor connected to the card. After I boot, I no longer see Intel HD4000 in my device managers. Nor does it detect my laptop screen. This is running Windows 8.1 Pro.

Are there more work for me to get internal lcd working? Or is my laptop not supported? I tried going into the bios and there's no option for enabling/disabling built in VGA option.

Any help would be much appreciated.

Paul

OK, the problem is your BIOS is setting your eGPU as the primary display upon detecting it at boot, and disabling the iGPU. Without the iGPU as the primary display you won't get Optimus features: accelerated internal LCD mode and x1 PCIe compression.

So the simplest fix for you would be to use the PCI Reset Delay switches on your eGPU adapters to delay assertion of the eGPU until *after* the bios has initialized. That way the iGPU will be set as the primary active device. Those are very small slider switches that exist on both eGPU adapters: PE4C and EXP GDC.

Once you get that going, would you mind completing your guide with 3dmark06, 3dmark11 and 3dmark13 benchmark runs on an external LCD and posting their links.?

Asus Zenbook is a popular ultrabook. We have very few ultrabook eGPU implementations so thank you for taking the time to post yours.

[Kaiyoti]

OK, the problem is your BIOS is setting your eGPU as the primary display upon detecting it at boot, and disabling the iGPU. Without the iGPU as the primary display you won't get Optimus features: accelerated internal LCD mode and x1 PCIe compression.

So the simplest fix for you would be to use the PCI Reset Delay switches on your eGPU adapters to delay assertion of the eGPU until *after* the bios has initialized. That way the iGPU will be set as the primary active device. Those are very small slider switches that exist on both eGPU adapters: PE4C and EXP GDC.

Once you get that going, would you mind completing your guide with 3dmark06, 3dmark11 and 3dmark13 benchmark runs on an external LCD and posting their links.

Asus Zenbook is a popular ultrabook. We have very few ultrabook eGPU implementations so thank you for taking the time to post yours.

Thanks, I will give this a run tomorrow and provide the benchmarks. Though I feel like the scores will be very low since this is a pretty low end card, I've been contemplating on getting a GTX 970/980 maybe even 980ti so I can rerun the tests if I do get those cards.

[Kaiyoti]

@Tech Inferno Fan, the switch on the EXP GDC Beast unfortunately did not work. There were two settings CTD and PTD I tried combinations of either and both, none worked. I looked at the bios and there seems to be i/o security that includes "Wifi Network" unlocked, I set that to locked and tried booting with eGPU and that port no longer works, anyway I re-enabled it. I did a bit of reading and you have suggested to do the hotplugging method. It unfortunately doesn't work for me. After hotplugging, the egpu starts up but the laptop screen is blank, and the external monitor does not turn on.

My PE4C is loaned out at the moment so I can't test that one currently.

[Juunasv]

Hey Kaiyoti and a late merry christmas.

 

I own the ux32vd. I found out, that the ux32vd and the ux32ln has the same size and ports, so I'm thinking about upgrading my ux32vd to ux32ln by just buying and exchanging the motherboards.
I'll then have a spare ux32vd motherboard, and thinking about making that into - I guess - a barebone laptop with a eGPU.

Now the ux32vd and your ux31a has the same CPU, and I have searched high and low for some result with either a rig with ux32vd and a eGPU or a rig containing the CPU and eGPU and their potential issues (bottlenecks to be accurate), but with no result. Your post is the closest one I've found.

I am thinking about making a rig with the nvidia gtx 960. I've even toyed with the idea of making a rig with two 960's, but results with that kind of rig and the CPU we're using is even scarce.

But you haven't had a conclusion with your rig.

Is it working? Have you upgraded as you mentioned?

 

- Juunasv